In addition to the two cabinet photos, I received 13 real photo postcards in the lot, but will only share a few. You'll definately want to click on the pictures to enlarge them.

The first one I believe we have the same fellow while still in the 30th battalion. He holds the traditional staff seen in many photos of the Chasseurs Alpines, and over his pack is the early Model 1886 Lebel bayonet with hooked quillon (most bayonets during WWI were manufactured without the quillons or had them removed). The second one is a pair of Chasseurs with a lot of nice detail visible.

The second photo is a very informal group of Chasseurs Alpins, the one in the middle clearly showing off the chevron on his sleeve. I don’t know if he’s a “Soldier First Class” or an NCO.

The next picture is a group from the 70th Battalion, and interesting study on how many ways someone can wear an Alpine beret!

Lastly here’s a photo that seems to show our fellow in the 70th Battalion in Lyon in 1918, if I’m reading the back correctly. If anyone can read French Cursive, I’d love to know what it says.

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Comments

vetraio50, 2 years agoHi! His French has lots of spelling errors. The card was written in Lyon on April 8, 1918. His name was Joseph. He wrote to his sister. She had written him a letter and he writes that he is glad she's well. He too is well, but he mentions a wound that he wound was not serious. He said that he will tell her what happened if she comes to Lyon for a few days. He mentions a friend Jean but says that he has has no more news from him. He asks to be remembered to his cousin.

Chrisnp, 2 years agoThanks for the translation vetraio50. It's nice to know about the spelling errors, as it hints a little more about the man. It's nice to have a teacher of French and Italian on the lists here! My only other language is German, and even with knowledge of the language, reading the handwriting on note that was written almost 100 years ago can be a real challenge.